Madness of the Moon
by The-MarmaladeCat1
Summary: It's close to the end in the World That Never Was, and there are some for whom the strain is beginning to become too much. Saix, Kairi, Xemnas - no pairings.


The man with the scar and the golden eyes tells her that his name is Saïx. He says it softly, like a blessing, as though it should mean something to her. It doesn't and she presses back against the wall of her cell, the ridge of its curve digging cold into the back of her thighs.

He holds the bars of her prison and presses his forehead against them, his eyes on the space above her breastbone beneath which her heart lies. Pluto curls around her feet, the low rumble of his growl shivering through her shins.

"It will not be long now, princess," the man says and the pet name seems strange in his mouth, as though he is affecting a mode of speech far beneath him. She keeps her eyes on his, golden like a bird of prey, and the claws that tip his fingers glint in the strange light.

oOo

Sometimes she wakes and the old one is there. She doesn't know why she thinks of him as the old one, only knows that the idea permeates every thought she has of him, colouring every image of him she holds in her mind. His age lies not in decrepitude, but in the dark hollow of his voice and the weight of his presence beating on the air. Where he stands, the light is drawn in as though it cannot escape the pull of him, yet never does it touch his body. She shudders as he draws back his hood and turns his head like a snake towards her crouched body.

His hair is white and sleek, colourless through its own nature rather than the touch of age, and like all predators he is beautiful. He does not touch the bars of her prison and when he speaks she does not know the language. He never calls her princess, but he calls her other names, foreign and meaningless as though he seeks to draw recognition from her. She never understands him, even when the weakest part of her being begs her to work with him and convince him to set her free.

He leaves in silence and when he is gone the corridor seems brighter.

oOo

Pluto's growl tells her when Saïx approaches. The dog can smell him coming like a storm on the horizon, because dogs are sensitive to such things. Saïx has the softest of footsteps and she thinks he may only allow for those slightest of scuffs out of an obscure sense of politeness. She knows that when he forgets his movements are entirely without sound.

He comes to talk to her, to watch her, and she thinks maybe also because he cannot stay away. His eyes are always on her, secret and wicked as though he allows himself this indulgence out of a perversity that she cannot quite comprehend.

Sometimes he puts his back to the bars and slides down into a crouch, his forearms resting on his knees. He looks dangerous even then with the hunch of his shoulders pulling the black material of his coat tight over bone and muscle.

Princess, he calls her. Queen of Hearts, and his voice is soft, full of a knowledge that makes her shiver. It comes back to her as he talks, what he is speaking of. She remembers in hints and flashes the things that she was told. Sora in the darkness, in the light, and a woman's voice telling her that she is a Princess of Heart, that she is their only hope. Their banner and bastion against the darkness. There were others, but she has forgotten them. She has forgotten so much.

oOo

"What are you?" she says to him.

He lifts his head as though he is scenting the wind and does not reply. Pluto is curling around her thighs and she digs her fingers into the hot scruff of his neck, pushing him away. She is awaiting an answer that will not come. Smoothing her skirt she scoots along the bottom of her cell, carefully, daring herself on how near to him she can make herself go.

She feels that she should say something brave like, Sora will come for me! But the words sound stupid and predictable to her and the thought dies. Moreover, he would have an answer for her that would make no sense. If she can pull together the bare bones of what is going on here then maybe she can work out a way to extricate herself from this twisted mess.

She is close to him now, looking at the curve of his neck and the fall of his hair across his shoulders. If she had a length of rope, or a wire, she could reach out through the bars, slide it across his neck and pull so that he choked against the bars. She would have to be fast and he would be strong, he might even tear out of her grasp. She has no rope, and no wire.

"What are you?" she asks again. He breathes out softly, thoughtfully, and his head tilts as though his gaze has shifted to the floor.

"Nothing," he replies and the way he speaks the word it sounds like a key to a map she cannot read. It sounds like a story holding poised in a haze of potential.

"Tell me," she says and reaches out to touch him. His shoulder is hard beneath her finger pads, and the warmth of him through the thickness of his coat is shocking. She had thought he would feel of nothing. He lets his head fall to the side as though he will rest it across the back of her hand, and his hair tickles her wrist, soft and light. She resists the urge to turn her hand and caress his cheek like a pet.

The cell is silent. She can feel Pluto poised behind her, ready to move. Beneath her hand she can feel Saïx holding himself still; it's written in the unnatural stillness of his body and the curve of his neck that must be starting to ache. She needs words to speak to him that will win him over or loosen his tongue enough that he will tell her again what is going on so that this time she might be able to make some sense out of it.

"What is Kingdom Hearts?" she whispers. His breath puffs hot against the back of her hand and for a horrible moment she thinks he might be going to kiss her skin. She braces herself , forcing herself not to pull away, but he only sighs instead.

"Your Queendom," he whispers. "Your gift to us, Lady."

How to ask? "Will Axel be there?" she says, desperate to keep his words flowing. He stiffens below her fingers and she knows immediately it was the wrong thing to have said. He moves faster than she has ever seen before, so quick she is still comprehending the movement by the time he has completed it. He grabs her wrist and pulls on her arm, and suddenly she is pressed up against the bars, their cold metal digging into her cheek. His fingers are tight, the bones in her wrist grinding together painfully. He pushes his face close to hers so that she can smell the salt of his breath and see the bared whiteness of his teeth. Her feet kick uselessly against the bars and over the snarl of his breath Pluto is barking, high desperate yelps that hurt her ears.

"I-I'm sorry," she stutters, cowed and off-balance by his sudden burst of aggression. His lips pull back as though he will speak and then his eyes are sliding sideways to something further down the corridor. He pulls back abruptly, folding his anger back away behind his golden eyes, and she pulls her arm back through the bars, cradling her throbbing wrist as he rises to his feet.

She can't hear anything over Pluto's barking and the scittering of his claws on the floor as he leaps and dances, but she can feel the air turn dark and cold. Saïx backs away, his face wiped clean once more back to his usual watchful expression, void of any emotion beyond a respectful stoicism. Kairi pushes herself backwards across the floor and drags the dog with her, pulling him around in front of her and burying her face in his hackles. He shivers and trembles before her and she is glad of his body to cling to.

From outside her prison the figure of the old one appears from the right. He strides slowly, unhurriedly across the window of her vision and Saïx backs away before him, bowing and disappearing into the darkness. The old one stops in the centre of her view, directly in front of her cage and stares after him. Then the hooded head turns to look at her and from its depths she thinks she can see the glint of his eyes. Abruptly he turns away and follows his subordinate into the darkness, leaving her pressed back against the wall, her fingers coiled tight in the fur at Pluto's neck.

It takes her a long time to calm the dog enough for his growling to subside and later on when she is tired, she pulls him close and will not let him go even when she is asleep.

oOo

She doesn't see either of them again for several days. Food is brought to her by a huge man with long, swinging braids and eyes that make her wish she had a coat, or a blanket, or something to cover herself with. He never speaks to her, simply passes the food through the bars of her prison and then with an insultingly courteous bow, leaves her alone again. She never tries to speak to him.

One day, he doesn't appear. Later on, well past the time she would normally be fed, a lanky man with a patch over one eye and thin, sneering lips opens the door and slides a tray across the floor towards her. She makes no move to pick it up, even though she can smell the salt tang of soup and meat, for he has not closed the door and instead leans casually against the jamb with arms folded, watching her.

She waits until it becomes clear that he is not going to leave, and then she pulls her courage and her pride around herself and picks the tray up, turning her back on him deliberately to take it away into the corner. If he wants to attack her, she will not be able to stop him anyway. It gives her a sense of vindication to know that she will show him to be a coward if he touches her whilst her back is turned. A small victory in a place where nothing is given freely.

"Your boyfriend fucked up," he says suddenly. She lifts the wooden cup to her lips and takes a sip of the hot soup, listening without wanting to seem so. He continues speaking regardless. "He wasn't s'posed to go after the rest of us anymore. If he keeps on after us there ain't gonna be anyone left to go to Kingdom Hearts after all this blows over."

She keeps her eyes on her tray, watching his shadow so that she can be ready in case he decides to move. He's picking at his gloves, like anyone else would pick at their nails. She wonders why he doesn't just take them off like a normal person would.

"You know he's coming here, don't you? Coming for you. Like a puppy coming after its mistress. You're gonna get him killed you know, all because he thinks he's in love with you. He'll bleed out on the floor and die whispering your name, because I'm gonna shoot the little bastard."

She looks up at him, glaring, the fury hot in her breast and the soup cup clutched tight in her hand. He looks right back at her as though awaiting a response. Then he smiles a little, tight and vicious. "I owe him that much," he says.

She throws the soup cup at him before she even knows what she is doing. He sidesteps and the soup goes up the far wall, the cup rattling to a halt at the base of the bars of the cell across the way. He turns away, laughing, and the cell door swings closed behind him with a jolting clang.

oOo

Pluto is up and barking furiously even before Saïx has finished manifesting fully out of the darkness. The man has the cell door open before the tendrils of black and white have finished fading and she is rolling to her feet without understanding why, her body moving before her mind has had chance to grasp the situation. Saïx is across the cell even as she is backing up, stumbling as her back hits the wall. She dodges sideways and hits the corner and he follows her around, grabbing the top of her arm and pulling her close.

Pluto leaps for him and he kicks the dog out of the air before the animal can connect with him, sending it rolling into a corner where it huddles, whining and hurt. Kairi screams to see him ill-treated so, and struggles to pull out of the man's grasp. But Saïx is strong, stronger than she could have imagined, and he doesn't seem to feel her nails clawing at him or the fist she has wrapped in his hair. He shakes himself loose from her grip and she pulls back, startled by the feral gleam in his eyes, frightened suddenly that he might try to bite her.

He spins her around by the top of her arm, his grip leaving and then back again so fast she doesn't have time to react and escape. Pinning her arms to her body he pulls her back against his chest and lifts her so that her feet kick wildly. She tries to kick at his kneecaps, but cannot reach and he she is at the wrong angle to strike at his groin. He pulls her into the darkness and it's a cold she remembers from before when another man pulled her down into the dark. His hands were cool though where she can feel the heat of this man through her top. The blackness takes her breath away and she is blind, her hands clawing into his coat against his belly and side as the darkness slides across her skin, silken and profane.

They emerge into a light so bright that it makes her eyes tear up, and Saïx drops her to the floor. She stumbles, twisting her ankle a little, and then he has her by the top of her arm again and is dragging her onwards. Kairi blinks, raising a forearm against the glare and through the watering of her eyes she sees a figure in the near distance turn and look down at them. She is dragged up a set of steps towards a higher platform and it is at this point that she remembers to fight. She tries to peel his fingers from her upper arm, but he's digging them so tightly into her flesh that she thinks he must be crushing the muscle beyond healing.

They appear to be at the top of a castle on a strange series of interconnecting platforms and walkways put together to allow for the viewing of the enormous moon hanging sickly and sullen in the sky above. Saïx is snarling something, calling out to the man on the platform above; in any other person it would have been raving. He drags her up onto the platform and she sees that the man is the old one. He has his hood pushed down so that the light of the strange moon makes his hair gleam brighter than it really is and his eyes are calm, if not a little curious.

Saïx is saying things she doesn't understand, words she doesn't recognise until he says, "Xemnas. Xemnas! Are you listening to me?" And the old one nods and says, "Yes."

This seems to foil Saïx for a moment, and they come to a standstill, he with his fingers around her arm, she hanging back as though she can hide behind him, for she doesn't want to be under the eyes of the old one either. This old one, Xemnas, is looking between her and Saïx, his eyes sliding over the grip Saïx has on her arm to her face and then away again to the other man's wild eyes. He straightens and turns slowly, keeping his gaze on Saïx's face.

"What are you doing, seven?" he says slowly.

"He came, and then he left again," Saïx is saying. "He killed three, right in the house of that beast."

He? Kairi thinks. Sora? Can they be talking about Sora?

"What of it?" Xemnas asks. "Why does this concern you?"

Saïx is breathing hard and his body is hunched over as though it is difficult for him to stand. She wants to pull away from him, but his grip has not loosened a fraction.

"You said it would not be necessary," Saïx pants. "You said it would be soon now."

Xemnas tilts his head and his eyes narrow as he breathes out a note of understanding. "I see," he says.

"Where is it! Where is my heart, Xemnas?" Saïx cries out and the force of his words makes him jerk on Kairi's arm, almost pulling her off her feet. She stumbles against him, bracing herself with her palm against his chest. She can smell the sweat on him, acrid and foul. He is shaking.

"You must control yourself, Seven," Xemnas is saying, his voice smooth and calm. "Three's death was unexpected, but not the setback you are making it out to be. There is no cause for concern. The Keyblade bearer will come to us when the time is right, we must simply keep him occupied until that point. I have sent Two out to slow his progress with more heartless. It will serve our purpose on all levels if he is slow to arrive here. After all, only he can complete our Kingdom Hearts for us."

She feels Saïx shudder at his words, a ripple of movement that passes through him in a sudden rush. He is gasping, his head down. Xemnas no longer looks at her, his attention wholly focussed on the man shivering at her side. "The moon," Saïx pants. "It's bright. It makes me..." He stumbles on his words and Kairi cranes to look into his face, not understanding his hesitation.

"...It makes it hard to think clearly."

"Does it make you feel?" Xemnas asks, and the curiosity in his voice is apparent.

"No," Saïx says softly, quickly. "Not that. But it makes it hard to stay still here. Hard to not kill."

Kairi flinches, aware all over again that she is caught in his grip and cannot get away. She thinks of looking to the old one for help, but knows inherently that he would offer her nothing. Xemnas it would seem, is disappointed by the answer.

"Why have you brought the girl here?" he asks. Saïx's fingers tighten around her arm and she gasps at the pain of it. He does not reply and Xemnas calls his name, softly, encouragingly. When there is still no response, the old one turns fully to face them and begins to pace slowly towards where they stand.

Is that? Can it be? She can hardly believe it, but she thinks on every outward breath she can hear Saïx growling, just barely above the panting of her breath.

"Saïx," Xemnas says softly. "Control yourself."

He's close now and Saïx is gripping her arm so tightly she can feel the tears running down her cheeks and her hand feels like it will burst from all the blood trapped in it. Saïx _is_ growling, she can hear it clearly now. "Let me go," she whispers desperately.

"Hush," Xemnas says.

Saïx pulls her back behind him, shielding her from the old one as though he will fight to protect her, but from what, she doesn't know.

"You must see through the pull of the moon, Saïx. You are not who you used to be. That is for later. Come now, show me the strength of will which brought you this far."

Saïx's head snaps up, his teeth bared, breath hissing between his lips. Xemnas' gaze is cool, impartial, and he reaches out a hand smoothly to run the tips of his fingers down the other man's cheek. For a moment Kairi thinks that Saïx will bite him. Then his eyes flicker closed and he stills beneath the touch. The old one continues to caress him, the movements slow and deliberate, hypnotic. She feels Saïx relax slowly beside her and for the first time his grip begins to loosen around her arm. Painful feeling begins to return to her hand as blood flow is restored.

Eventually, Xemnas leans forward putting his face close to the other man's ear, his cheek brushing against his hair. "Good," he says. "Now take her back to her cell and return here at once. Do this and prove your control to me."

Saïx's breathing has returned to its normal level and almost it is as though nothing was ever untoward with him. Still though, she can smell his sweat.

"Yes, Superior," he says quietly and his hunched shoulders turn into a placatory bow. Xemnas straightens and his eyes fall to Kairi. "Go with him, Princess," he says as though she has a choice. "My sincerest apologies for this inconvenience tonight."

She wonders if she should reply with something equally formal, or if she should spit at him. She has the courage to do neither and Saïx is already pulling her away and back into the darkness. She holds her breath as it closes over her face and screws her eyes shut against its touch.

Her cell seems dark when they step back out into the world. She can hear Pluto whining even before the portal has fully opened and to see him crouched against the wall waiting sends a rush of emotion through her. He looks frightened, cowed and desperate for her. As Saïx pushes her firmly through the door of her cell, she looks down at the way Pluto hobbles as he comes to push up against her legs and a cold, dangerous anger knifes through her.

"You're pathetic," she says to Saïx, the words bitten off with her fury. She turns to him and in that moment she would strike him dead if only her anger could give her the power to do so. "You're nothing but a disgusting monster. A beast, less than an animal. Sora's going to come for you. And when he does, he's going to teach you a lesson you'll never forget."

Her eyes meet his through the bars of her cell. He pauses for a moment and then he bows and steps backwards into the darkness. Just before the dark takes him, she thinks she hears him say, "I look forward to the day, Princess." And then he is gone.

Kairi puts her back to the wall and slides down into the corner. Pulling Pluto against her, she buries her face in his fur and together they huddle and wait for the dawn to come.


End file.
